Gold slipped more than 1 percent on Wednesday as speculators booked profits after a recent rally, but fears of a delay to a $700 billion US rescue plan kept the metal's safe-haven appeal intact. Gold has bounced nearly 20 percent since tumbling to an 11-month low of $736 an ounce two weeks ago, signalling that investors took advantage of lower prices and uncertainties in the global economy to buy back the bullion.
Gold was trading at $883.00 an ounce, down $7.70 an ounce, or 0.86 percent, from New York's notional close. It rallied to a seven-week high of $908.80 an ounce on Tuesday before losing much of the gains due to a rebounding dollar.
Platinum was trading at $1,165.50 an ounce, down $48.00 or 3.96 percent from New York's notional close on Tuesday, when it hit an intraday high of $1,255.50 an ounce. Platinum posted its biggest one-day percentage gain on Monday in line with rises in gold, according to Reuters data dating back to 1985. Platinum is mainly used in autocatalysts.